Anyway to stabilize water level in sump?

[Grendel0501]

I purchased a used sealife systems wet/dry , and gutted out the drip plate and bio-balls to turn it into a sump.

Pic of sump setup
My intake hose is fed directly into a penguin HOB filter. This leads to the first chamber where eggcrate seperates the octopus skimmer pump from the chaeto. The water then has to flow over the baffle to get into the second chamber which has live rock , the return pump and the pump for the HOB reactor. (The skimmer cup broke so it isn't on right now)

It works fairly well , my only problem with it is evaporation causes the water level to drop about 2 inches a day. This causes my skimmer to be very inconsistent.

Is there a way to get a stable water level in the sump? Would a sump with a middle chamber , do this?

I am limited when it comes to new sump options , I would make a custom sump out of a 20L or something like that , but the space under my tank is only 11.5in wide , most prebuilt sumps are atleast 12w , I found afew that are 11 but they I don't think they would keep a constant water level.

[tkeracer619]

You can add an auto top off system that will keep it stable without changing the sump.

[dcombs44]

If the water level in the last chamber is lower than the baffle, the water level in your skimmer chamber will always be level with the baffle. The only level that will ever change will be the level in your return pump chamber.

Easy fix. Take enough water out to lower the level in the final chamber to just below the baffle.

[johnny313]

here is really good video how to make a sump...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxnugJGiT3o

[Grendel0501]

Oh , I didn't even think about a ATO. Not sure where I would fit the RO container , I think I might be able to jam a 5g container behind the tank. But the problem is going to be taking it out for refills.

[Grendel0501]

Originally Posted by dcombs44

If the water level in the last chamber is lower than the baffle, the water level in your skimmer chamber will always be level with the baffle. The only level that will ever change will be the level in your return pump chamber.

Easy fix. Take enough water out to lower the level in the final chamber to just below the baffle.

I see how that would work , the only thing is I worry I would not handel the evap well enough and one day the return pump would go dry.

[dcombs44]

Originally Posted by Grendel0501

I see how that would work , the only thing is I worry I would not handel the evap well enough and one day the return pump would go dry.

That's where an auto top off would come into play.

www.aquahub.com

Assemble your own pretty cheap.

[Chris27]

A bubble trap will be your best friend - do a little searching around here to get an idea - compartmentalizing a section of your sump for your skimmer is what's required here.

[jmking33]

what size tank do you have? how much water is evaporating? I just use a plastic file folder tub I bought at walmart. It holds about 4 gallons which is good for about 6 days. cheap and small. You could also run a line depending on your tanks location. If it backs up to a closet on the other side of the wall you could put the bucket/tub in the closet and just run the tube and power cord for a power head to fill the sump up again. (just throwing some ideas out there). Ive even see guys make "covers" for their buckets to make them "pleasing to my wifes eye"lol. Outta wood, plastic...all kinds of stuff.

[Grendel0501]

I'm going to try a ATO for now. If it doesn't work then I will get a custom sump built.

Looking around to figure out what ATO to get. Can't decide between putting one together or buying a pre-built setup.

[chercm]

Originally Posted by Chris27

A bubble trap will be your best friend - do a little searching around here to get an idea - compartmentalizing a section of your sump for your skimmer is what's required here.

i thought just use a filter sock will be sufficient to trap the bubbles

[jmking33]

I bought mine from some guys online that build them....I think it cost me like 25 dollars. works like a champ, Ive never had a problem in 8 months of use. Bought it autotopoff.com

[Grendel0501]

The prices for most full setups come to $50-60 + shipping.
I think I might just go ahead and spend $72 and get the JBJ , they look pretty decent. Anyone use the JBJ?

[kc350twin]

I have one and it has been rock solid for 4 years now. I have heard a many failures with them though.

[ganjero]

You might want to look at a litermeter. Just measure how much water evaporates per day and set your lm to dose that. Plus you can later on add 2 more pumps and dose other things. The LM is more expensive than an ATO but IME more reliable and it can push water 25ft away so you can hide a big trash can (or any container) with RO water and route the small tubing to your sump.

[sjm817]

Originally Posted by Grendel0501

The prices for most full setups come to $50-60 + shipping.
I think I might just go ahead and spend $72 and get the JBJ , they look pretty decent. Anyone use the JBJ?

One thing i dont like about the JBJ is the way they are set up, they need 1" of sump level change to kick in. That is far too much.

[d0ughb0y]

if your skimmer chamber water is not at constant level, you need to fix your sump baffles to make it at constant level. you don't really want to use an ATO to adjust the level in the skimmer area. ATO would be for the return area so it does not run dry.